Hepatitis C genotype change after transplantation utilizing hepatitis C positive donor organs.

A shortage in organs for transplantation has led to the increased use of hepatitis C (HCV) infected donor organs for solid organ transplant recipients infected with HCV. However, the donor HCV genotype is not routinely checked or known prior to transplant. Here, we report 4 cases of genotype conversion after transplantation in patients receiving HCV infected donor organs. This change in genotype may potentially impact HCV progression as well as treatment choice for these patients.

Musculoskeletal problems and fluoride exposure: A cross-sectional study among metal smelting workers.

Frequent and repetitive activities in job and awkward postures are shown as major contributors of musculoskeletal problems in most of the occupational health studies; however, efforts to explore newer risk factor are important to plan interventional measures. In this backdrop, this study examined contribution of fluoride exposure to musculoskeletal complaints. A cross-sectional interviewer-administered questionnaire survey was conducted involving 180 randomly selected subjects from a metal smelting industry. Clinical examination of the subjects was also performed to assess their health status and morbidity details. Assessment of personal exposure to particulate and gaseous fluoride at workplace was conducted. Urinary fluoride level was also examined in post-shift samples collected from study subjects. The mean age of the study subjects was 39.1 (±6.7) years. Majority of the workers (42.5%) were engaged in pot room. About 54% workers were suffering from backache and 66% subjects had joint pain. Exposure of workers to both particulate and gaseous fluoride and post-working shift urinary fluoride level was significantly higher in pot-room workers in comparison with all other workers. It was observed that age (odds ratio (OR): 1.62; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.18-2.34), drinking untreated water (OR: 1.51; 95% CI: 1.03-2.76), working in pot room (OR: 1.44; 95% CI: 1.13-1.91) and urinary fluoride level (OR: 2.71; 95% CI: 1.81-3.75) had significant effects on musculoskeletal complaints. This study concludes that along with other predictors such as nature of work, posture at work and age of worker, exposure to fluoride also has significant role in the occurrence of musculoskeletal morbidity.

Organochlorine pesticide residues in blood samples of agriculture and sheep wool workers in Bangalore (rural), India.

To describe exposure level of organochlorine pesticides (OCP) among workers occupationally engaged in agriculture and sheep wool associated jobs, the present study was carried out in rural neighborhood of Bangalore city, India. Thirty participants were interviewed and obtained informed consent before blood sample collection. The maximum concentrations of OCP were detected in blood samples of agriculture workers than sheep wool workers. Among the metabolites of HCH and DDT, lindane (γ-HCH) and p,p'-DDE were the most contributed to the total OCP. There were no differences in pesticide residues found between sex and work groups. It was observed that about 30% of samples exceeded the tolerance limits of 10 µg/L prescribed for HCH under the prevention of food adulteration act. Therefore, the present study recommends continuous monitoring with larger sample size.

Assessing dust exposure in an integrated iron and steel manufacturing plant in South India.

A study to monitor and estimate respirable particulate matter (RPM), toxic trace metal concentrations in the work environment was carried out in different sections of an integrated steel manufacturing industry. The average RPM concentration observed varied according to the section blast furnace was 2.41 mg/m;{3}; energy optimization furnace, 1.87 mg/m;{3}; sintering plant, 0.98 mg/m;{3}; continuous casting machine, 1.93 mg/m;{3}. The average trace metal concentration estimated from the RPM samples like iron, manganese, lead and chromium did not exceed ACGIH prescribed levels.

Environmental and biological monitoring in a lead acid battery manufacturing unit in India.

An environmental and biological monitoring of a lead acid battery manufacturing unit was carried out to measure the respirable particulate matter, lead content in working atmosphere and blood lead levels of workers employed in different sections. The results showed high mean air lead concentration in buffing (1444.45 microg/m(3)), plate cutting (430.14 microg/m(3)) and pasting (277.48 microg/m(3)) sections. The mean blood lead levels of employees in these sections were also higher than the values prescribed by ACGIH.

Assessment of acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase activities in blood plasma of agriculture workers.

BACKGROUND: Cholinesterase determination indicates whether the person has been under pesticide exposure is not. It is recommended that the worker's cholinesterase level should be assessed for workers at a pesticide applied region. Hence, cholinesterase activities in blood samples of agricultural workers exposed to vegetables and grape cultivation with age matched, unexposed workers, who never had any exposure to pesticides, were estimated. METHODS: The detailed occupational history and lifestyle characters were obtained by questionnaire. Cholinesterase activity was determined by the method of Ellman as modified by Chambers and Chambers. RESULTS: AChE was ranging from 1.65 to 3.54µmoles/min/ml in exposed subjects where as it was ranged from 2.22 to 3.51µmoles/min/ml in control subjects. BChE activity was ranging from 0.16 to 5.2µmoles/min/ml among exposed subjects, where as it was ranged from 2.19 to 5.06µmoles/min/ml in control subjects. The results showed statistically significant reduction in enzyme activities (AChE 14%; BChE 56%) among exposed subjects. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that the reduction in cholinesterase activity may lead to varieties of effects. Hence it is compulsory to use protective gadgets during pesticide spray. Further a continuous biomonitoring study is recommended to assess pesticide exposure.

Multinomial logistic regression model to assess the levels in trans, trans-muconic acid and inferential-risk age group among benzene-exposed group.

There are only a few studies performed on multinomial logistic regression on the benzene-exposed occupational group. A study was carried out to assess the relationship between the benzene concentration and trans-trans-muconic acid (t,t-MA), biomarkers in urine samples from petrol filling workers. A total of 117 workers involved in this occupation were selected for this current study. Generally, logistic regression analysis (LR) is a common statistical technique that could be used to predict the likelihood of categorical or binary or dichotomous outcome variables. The multinomial logistic regression equations were used to predict the relationship between benzene concentration and t,t-MA. The results showed a significant correlation between benzene and t,t-MA among the petrol fillers. Prediction equations were estimated by adopting the physical characteristic viz., age, experience in years and job categories of petrol filling station workers. Interestingly, there was no significant difference observed among experience in years. Petrol fillers and cashiers having a higher occupational risk were in the age group of ≤24 and between 25 and 34 years. Among the petrol fillers, the t,t-MA levels with exceeding ACGIH TWA-TLV level was showing to be more significant. This study demonstrated that multinomial logistic regression is an effective model for profiling the greatest risk of the benzene-exposed group caused by different explanatory variables.

Environmental pollution in rural areas of Orissa state due to industrial emissions--with special reference to fluoride.

Angul - Talcher belt in Central Orissa, having a number of industries contributing to a great extent to deteriorate the air quality of the surrounding villages. Previous reports showed higher SPM, SO2, NO, levels in air and prevalence of respiratory illness, skin and teeth disorders among village population. Higher ground water fluoride, urine and serum fluoride among the cattle were also reported in some villages. Present study reports SPM, SO2, NOx and Fluorides (gaseous and Particulate) in ambient air around aluminium smelter during February and August 1996. High volume sampling technique for SPM and the standard colorimetric methods (BIS) for analyses of SO2 and NOx were adopted. Fluoride in air and water were estimated by standard fluoride ion selective electrode method. Higher SPM, SO2 and NOx values than prescribed CPCB standard were obtained in February. Gaseous fluoride in village air were varied between, 1.66 - 7.64 mg/m3 in February and 1.11 - 22.75 mg/m3 in August, whereas particulate fluoride ranged between, 0.054 - 19.61 mg/m3. Water sources of the villages near the smelter showed fluoride values above permissible limit. The study indicated higher fluoride pollution in air and water of the surrounding villages.